Saturday, May 31, 2008

Out of the 15 books that I said I would read for this challenge, I read 18!!!!! Instead of reposting all 18 books here - I am going to have a link to the Original Post that includes a list of all the books, dates I completed them, and links to my reviews.

Finished my second challenge - except I wish I could have done a little better. You didn't have a required number of books to read - but I thought I would get more done in May. I guess with mid-terms and two major projects getting in the way I didn't do too bad.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

I decided to join another reading challenge - I think I need to go to Challenges Anonymous. LOL.

It is the Southern Reading Challenge that began May 15 and runs through August 15. It is being hosted by Maggie at Maggie Reads. The rules are easy. Read THREE southern setting books by southern authors in THREE months. The books have to be set in the south and written by authors who are from the south. I already have my three picked out:

Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris Completed 6/6/08; ReviewPrince of Tides by Pat ConroyTo Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Monday, May 19, 2008

What a fascinating, engaging, and gripping novel. I was totally captivated by this book. It is a tale of a Gothic mansion called Angelfield, the willful Isabelle, the twins Adeline and Emmeline, ghosts, a governess, and a devestating fire.

A young woman, Margaret Lea, is commissioned to write the biography of Vida Winter, an aging author who has hidden her life from the public eye. Margaret surrenders to the power of Miss Winter's storytelling but remains suspicious of her sincerity.

Quote from the book synopsis: "She [Margaret] demands the truth from Vida, and together they confront the ghosts that have haunted them while becoming finally, transformed by the truth themselves."

Saturday, May 10, 2008

What a wonderful story. Once again Nicholas Sparks has enraptured me with his writing. The Choice raises some tough questions, makes you take stock and look at your beliefs and even goes so far as to ask the question - How far should you go to keep the hope of love alive?

This challenge is being hosted by 3M at 1morechapter. This is a great challenge for me to belong to as I have a habit of starting books and then not finishing them because another one looks so good I have to start it too.

The rules of the challenge are that you choose a minimum of 3 books that you have started (read 50 or more pages) before May 1 but haven't finished yet. It can overlap with other challenges and you can change your list but the book has to have been started before May 1. This Challenge runs from May 15 till November 15, 2008.

Monday, May 5, 2008

Another Day, Another Challenge. Only this one is really, really easy. All I have to do is record the number of books I read from May 5, 2008 to June 1, 2008. No lists, no categories, nothing - just a list of books that I have read this month.

Friday, May 2, 2008

Well, I tried another Jude Deveraux book (thanks to Walking on Sunshine). I have to say that this book made me laugh, cry, wish for a second chance, and hope for the future. Leslie, Madison, and Ellie each get a chance to discover what would happen if they had chosen a different path in their lives when they were twenty-one. Would they finally find their heart's desire or would they choose the life they have now?

While I know that going back is impossible, going forward doesn't necessarily mean to go forward on the path we are on now. The future holds our hopes and dreams and we can change what we are today to what we want to be tomorrow. This book made me take stock of my life, my choices, my hopes, and my dreams. I have come to realize that, though I can't change the past, I need to make a few changes in order to have the future that I want.

Jude Deveraux writes the three individual stories with fascinating detail. However, she ties all three stories together to keep with the main focus of the book. This was a thought-provoking and entertainingly great read!!!